Wharton, who was set to start at left guard, injured his knee in the Bengals’ preseason opener against the Jets.

Sands, a second-year reserve safety, played in one game as a rookie and suffered his injury against the Falcons on Aug. 16. Prater was the team’s fifth-round pick and he injured his knee in practice on July 28. Ghee is a third-year player who appeared in seven games last season.

None of the moves comes as a major surprise. Second-year Clint Boling has stepped in for Wharton, who was slated to start at left guard before the injury in the preseason opener. Ghee showed improvement before the injury. The Bengals have to hope Ghee and Prater recover well and can compete for roster spots next season at a position where there could be some turnover in 2013.